Rio Ferdinand has warned Arsenal that Wayne Rooney is ready to end his goalscoring drought in spectacular fashion - starting tonight.

Rooney has not scored in open play for Manchester United since March 30, his two goals this season coming from the penalty spot in the Premier League and Champions League.

Injuries, a sex scandal and his ill-advised contract saga with United all combined to make it the worst start to a season in Rooney's career but close friend Ferdinand said the forward is close to returning to his best form.

And with Premier League leaders Arsenal visiting Old Trafford tonight, Ferdinand said Rooney's return to full fitness and sharpness could not have come at a better time for Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

"Everyone knows what happened over the last couple of weeks beforehand but Wayne's come back and he's looking sharp," said Ferdinand. "He didn't score in our last game but he looked sharp and set up a good number of chances for other people.

"It's only a matter of time before he scores and then goes on one of those runs where he scores loads of goals. Just having him back around the place in a good mood is fantastic. He's a great lad to have around and long may it continue.

"Arsenal are a good team but I'm concentrating more on what we've got in our dressing-room. I'm confident in our team and the individuals as a collective that we can go out there and beat any team and I'll be looking to do that on Monday."

United's next two games could go a long way to defining their title challenge. After tonight's encounter with Arsene Wenger's side, United travel to Chelsea next Sunday for another potentially seismic top-of-the-table clash.

And although this season's title race is shaping up to be one of the closest for years, with United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham all in the mix, Ferdinand said he remained confident Fergie's men have what it takes to claim a record 19th title.

"Arsenal and Chelsea are very big games for us," said Ferdinand. "We're playing two of the teams at the top of the league back-to-back. They'll be hard games but games we all enjoy playing in.

"They'll be big spectacles with everybody watching and we'll be going out there to win. Fingers crossed we can do that and if we can it will put us in a great position for the rest of the season."

Ferdinand admitted to being surprised by Chelsea's dramatic loss of form, which has seen Carlo Ancelotti's side claim just five points from a possible 18 to slip from top spot to third in a matter of weeks.

But the 32-year-old defender said it was dangerous to underestimate Chelsea's powers of recovery, despite their problems behind the scenes which have contributed to their poor run.

"Maybe it's a surprise [Chelsea's dip] but if you looked at their schedule in the early part of the season, on paper you could have said that they could almost go unbeaten," said Ferdinand.

"They've got a difficult month coming up and they've dropped some points. We concentrate on what we do, but you do look out of the corner of your eye at other teams and how they're doing.

"If Chelsea continue doing what they're doing [dropping points] it would be pleasing for us. But if they go on a winning streak then it's up to us to make sure we go side by side with that and make sure we stay ahead and finish the league as winners."

After an injury-ravaged campaign last term, which saw him miss almost the entire season, as well as a knee injury which ruled him out of the World Cup, Ferdinand is relieved to be back playing regularly for United.

"I've played 15 games this season already, so this is a good run of games for me," said Ferdinand. "If I have to sit out three or four games at this stage I'll be disappointed, but I don't see that happening.

"I'm enjoying being back and playing football. That's the most important thing. I love going out there and training every day, which I'm doing. I've hardly missed any sessions up until now and I'm doing what I love and enjoy most.

"The intensity never goes away. If anything it's probably more intense. On the training pitch you're screaming and shouting every day and wanting to win games. You lose a game in training, you come in huffing and puffing and people know you were on the losing team.

"I'm training probably harder than at any point in my career, trying to make sure I stay out there on the pitch and continue playing. I don't want my career to finish. People like [Paul] Scholesy and [Ryan] Giggsy are shining lights of that. They've worked hard and you see the rewards they've got out of the game trophy-wise."